Every team needs an irrational fan favorite. If it’s not the short guy, it’s the white guy, or barring that, the fat guy or the old guy. For the Knicks, for four-and-a-half seasons, it was their third scoring option. This was not a recipe for success, and Nate Robinson was the most visible figure on a team that was often terrible, occasionally stupid, and never boring. I miss him. I know it’s not healthy, but this is my chosen codependence, and I make no apologies for pining for our abusive relationship solely because he made me laugh.

Brian DiMenna

The whole things is definitely worth your time.

As dismal as you may be feeling after last night’s disappointing finish in Brooklyn, it’s worth a second to remember how much better things are around these parts. The Knicks played a high-intensity game Monday night with first place in the division on the line. There were stakes in the proceedings, clear and much-desired stakes. It’s a great thing.

Because it wasn’t too long ago that the lone attraction on the Knicks was to see what crazy thing Nate Robinson might do. He could go for 35, or he might shoot threes at his own basket. It was that kind of unsatisfying rollercoaster, the kind that just sort of makes you dizzy.

The Knicks spent a lot of time in those days marketing Robinson, a physical freak of nature who was endearing in his way, but a player who sadly had little to do with winning. It was a four-year, love-hate relationship, in which we were amused by his antics and at times spectacular ability, while bewildered by his cartoonish decision making and the fact his teams never won many actual games.

It’s sort of amazing really. Nate Robinson can do things that almost defy human capability. His leaping ability is nothing short of a miracle. And yet, if he’s on the cover of your media guide, you know your team is basically screwed.

So cheers, Nate! It was fun in its way, but man am I glad that it’s over.